I hope everyone had a GREAT Thanksgiving break! There are so many things to be grateful for this holiday season. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to teach Spanish! Elementary Spanish programs are not common and I am so thankful I get to be a part of this great program. I am thankful for my students. They are teaching me so many things. I love their hugs, their greetings, and the excitement in their eyes when they see me. They make me feel like a rock star sometimes. How many people get to feel like that at work? In Kindergarten we have continued to work on greetings "hola" (hello), "buenos días" (good morning), "buenas tardes" (good afternoon), "buenas noches" (good night), adiós" (goodbye), and recently we have added "¿Cómo estás?"(How are you?) "Muy bien"(very well) , "Bien" (Well)", "Más o menos" (Ok), "Mal"(bad), and "Muy mal"(Very bad). We continue to practice "yo soy un niño/una niña" (I am a boy/girl), "yo me llamo" (my name is), "mira"(look), "escucha" (listen), "no hablen" (no talking), "levanta la mano" (raise your hand), "salta"(jump), "baila" (dance), "marcha"(march), "camina"(walk), "corre"(run) "alto/para"(stop) "habla" (talk), "canta"(sing), "grita"(yell), and "duerme"(sleep). We have also added "aplaude"(clap), "señala"(point), "saluda"(say hello), "muerde"(bite), "llora"(cry), "basta ya"(That's enough), "juega"(play),"agarra"(grab), "tira"(throw), "patea la pelota"(kick the ball), "batea la pelota"(bat the ball), and "rebota la pelota"(bounce the ball). We read the book "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You See?"(Oso Café, ¿qué ves ahí?) We learned animal and colors vocabulary. The students know how to perform the signs for the animal words in the book. They have also just started being able to produce the words in Spanish.

Looking ahead we will learn some basic food vocabulary, we will learn some vocabulary associated with a snowman, and we will talk about Christmas traditions in Mexico. We will be busy in Kindergarten!

In first grade we continue to review all of the verbs and vocabulary that we learned last year. We are wrapping up the "Go Away Big Green Monster". Students practiced body parts vocabulary "ojos"(eyes), "boca"(mouth), "nariz"(nose), "orejas"(ears), and "pelo"(hair). We read"Go Away Big Green Monster" in Spanish to practice our colors and body parts vocabulary. We drew our own monsters and wrote sentences about our monsters. Spain is the country we are focusing on for first grade. We will talk about the "La Fiesta de la Tomatina" which takes place on the last Wednesday of August. It's a giant food fight in the town of Buñol. For one hour people have a huge tomato fight. We will also talk about the Christmas traditions of Spain.

In second and third grades we continue to review all of the verbs that we learned last year. We read "Go Away Big Green Monster". We reviewed "ojos"(eyes), "pelo"(hair), "nariz"(nose), "boca"(mouth), and "orejas"(ears). We reviewed our colors. Students drew their own monsters and wrote sentences describing their monsters using their body parts vocabulary and color words. We are focusing on the nine Central American countries this year for second and third grade. The next countries we will be focusing on are Cuba and the holiday traditions of Puerto Rico.

Just to see what they would say I asked one class of students to tell me in Spanish what they were thankful for this Thanksgiving. One student said "Mi familia" (My family) which surprised me since we hadn't really practiced that since last Thanksgiving. Another said "Los dientes"(my teeth), and another said "el pelo"(my hair). I was impressed that they are starting to improvise with their vocabulary. Even though their vocabulary is limited they could still answer the question meaningfully. Speaking a foreign language is not only about what a person can say but it is also about their ability to communicate even when that person is limited by their vocabulary. I am so proud that my students have begun to take this step!​I am thankful for my students and their excitement for Spanish. I am thankful for their hardworking classroom teachers who support me. I am thankful for the other elementary Spanish teachers. Our program would not be what it is today without their creativity, hard work, and dedication. I am thankful for all the people who work hard to make Madison City Schools a great place for teachers and students!Have a blessed holiday season!If you have any questions or concerns feel free to email me at joellejones@madisoncity.k12.al.us